Most of today's commercially available personal watercraft have a hull and a deck disposed directly thereon. The deck has a pedestal onto which a straddle-type seat is disposed. When such watercraft travel over waves, the forces due to impacts between the hull and the waves are transferred to the driver and passengers which can make the riding experience uncomfortable, especially over long distances. The only cushioning against these impacts is provided by the padding in the seat.
In an effort to minimize the transfer of these forces to the driver and passengers, some watercraft have a suspension element, such as a spring and damper assembly, disposed between the seat and the deck. Although this reduces the transfers of these forces to the body of the driver and passengers, this arrangement tends to still solicit the legs of the driver and passengers since the seat now moves relative to the footrests formed in the deck, as well as, for the driver, the hands and arms that have to follow the movement of the helm assembly.
Another way to minimize the transfer of these forces to the driver and passengers consists in suspending the whole deck above the hull. The engine, fuel tank, and propulsion system are still in and/or connected to the hull and a sub-deck is disposed on the hull to protect the components in the hull from water. The hull and sub-deck together form a hull and sub-deck assembly (HSD) assembly. The deck is suspended on the HSD assembly. In this arrangement, the footrest can still be formed with the deck, and as such the legs of the drivers and passengers are less solicited than in watercraft where only the seat is suspended.
To suspend the deck above the HSD assembly, suspension members, such as suspension arms, and/or suspension elements, such as hydraulic dampers, need to be connected from one to the other. One way to do this consists in connecting one end of each of the suspension members and/or elements under the deck and connecting the opposite end of each of the suspension members and/or elements to an external portion of the sub-deck. However, this leaves the suspension members and/or suspension elements exposed to the water, which can lead to premature wear of the suspension members and/or elements, or may cause water to infiltrate these components and thereby affecting their efficiency.
Therefore, there is a need for a personal watercraft having a suspended deck which reduces the exposure of the suspension members and/or elements.